I 517--Tim Eyman's new secret initiative

Several months ago, around the time Tim Eyman and his pals Roy Ruffino and Eddie Agazarm began accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars from big corporations for I-1185 (Eyman’s measure to reimpose the unconstitutional two-thirds voting requirement for raising revenue), they quietly began scheming to have I-1185 petitioners collect signatures for a second initiative that they deliberately chose not to tell the public or their own supporters about: I-517.

See, Eyman has long been interested in trying to figure out how to run cheaper campaigns. His initiative factory’s biggest expense has always been the cost of signatures – he buys them rather than relying on volunteers to collect them. As mentioned, he figures if he had more time to run signature drives, he’d be able to get away with paying mercenary petitioners less than he does now.

To date, the campaign for I-517 has been run out of the public eye. Eyman did not announce in April that he would seek to qualify I-517 as an initiative to the Legislature. He didn’t tell his supporters, he didn’t tell the press, and he certainly didn’t tell his opposition (though we quickly found out what he was up to anyway).

Normally, Eyman spends a great deal of time promoting his initiatives to reporters and to friendly audiences. He circulates talking points weekly, shows up at Republican Party gatherings to pitch his latest schemes, and sends out fundraising appeals via snail mail. But he hasn’t done any of that for I-517.

Most importantly, until just recently, Eyman failed to report that he was raising and spending money for I-517 as required by law.

1. No Go

Washingtonians know that any initiative with Tim Eymans name on it, is NOT GOOD for Washington State. He is forcing the state to bankruptcy with his ridiculous initiatves. If any of his bills are voted in, our governemnt will be forced to raise taxes to offset the loss of revenues from Eymans actions. Please think before you sign. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Don't let Tim Eyman lull you into false security.

This morning, at the Secretary of State’s Elections Annex in Olympia, Tim Eyman and his pals Eddie Agazarm and Paul Jacob showed up to deliver what they said were 345,000 signatures for Initiative 517, Eyman’s latest scheme, which is intended to make it easier and cheaper for Tim Eyman to qualify initiatives for the ballot every year, so he can eke even more profits out of his initiative factory.

I attended Eyman’s press conference and responded afterwards on behalf of all of the good people in Washington State who are sick and tired of destructive, self-serving Tim Eyman initiatives that drain our common wealth, undermine our plan of government, and weaken the vital public services we all rely on.

Following Eyman’s remarks, I announced that NPI is spearheading the formation of a new political action committee to oppose I-517: Stop Tim Eyman’s Profit Machine. Our goal is to build a strong and diverse statewide coalition to defeat this measure and protect the initiative process – which Eyman already exploits on an annual basis – from further abuse and manipulation. The initiative and referendum were created to allow the people to

Stop Tim Eyman’s Profit Machine is not an NPI project. It is a coalition open to all who are tired of destructive Tim Eyman initiatives and want to help organize opposition to Eyman’s most self-serving scheme yet. Twice during the past few years, Washington’s progressive movement has come up short against Tim Eyman because no one stepped up to jumpstart the opposition. We cannot afford such a leadership vacuum now… or ever again. There is too much at stake.